Sapa

Trip Start Nov 25, 2004

169

Trip End Jan 26, 2005

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Flag of Vietnam Sapa, Vietnam
Monday, January 3, 2005

Heading north to Sapa was a great decision. We decided to take the day train up there (10 hours) and were so lucky with the weather it was unbelievable as its notoriously foggy up there at the mo as we found out on our treks! We had a 4:30 start to get to the train station for 6 with not a soul around apart from a moped strewn with 6 dead skinned pigs! Yuck! Great first thing in the morning - can you imagine seeing that in the UK!

We had hard seats all the way which is the lowest class for those who know train travel in Vietnam! The guards must have quoted us 7 different prices to get a sleeper but we were wide awake at this point so decided to tough it out rather than get ripped off! :0) We ended up in a carriage next to one full of chickens and ducks, making friends with the Vietnamese woman they belonged to and having multiple conversations - us in English, her in Vietnamese

Bracelet sellers

! Communication at its best! We sailed past stunning mountain scenery and rice terraces and I found my first Vietnamese pen pal! Awwwww!

We arrived in Sapa around 17:00 and managed to catch sunset over the mountains! It was just like a perfect chilly English winter day topped off with a candlelit dinner for 2! Don't worry Paul's not getting romantic, there was a powercut!!!! We ended the day with an amazing stroke of FAAAAAAAATE...we went to the only hotel in Sapa that had electricity and asked if we could charge our camera there while having a couple of beers in the hotel bar! This bar was GENIUS...it had a huge glitter ball in the middle of the dancefloor with a huuuge tacky Xmas tree and 'I love you baby' (our first dance at our wedding!) came on! How random is that!!!!! Funnily enough we loved it!!!!!!!!!

We spent the next 2 days on treks in and around Sapa which were great! Not strenuous at all really but took in some great villages and countryside even though it was foggy! We had a great guide who spent his time keeping me amused while fending off the hill tribe folks who were constantly trying to sell us everything! One tactic of the children was to hold my hand for about 1km until I gave in!

Dialogue between us and a 12 year old trying to sell us a shirt for Paul:
I said, "It's not big enough."
She said, "Your boyfriend is very big."
I said regretfully, "He's not my boyfriend he's my husband!" but didn't mention anything about the size comment! Hee Hee!

Our Sapa experience ended in true adventure with us taking mopeds back to the guesthouse overtaking trucks on mountain roads with a half metre gap between us and a sheer cliff! Now ask me how I feel about mopeds!!!! Are we supposed to keep our eyes open?????